Swisschamp vs SwissTool Spirit

[AxelF]

Hello everyone.

I'm want to buy a "multitool" and from what i've read,studied,etc... i came up with these two products :

SwissChamp and SwissTool Spirit.

I'm from Romania and as far as i sought i've found only Victorinox and Leatherman products.
I saw a lot of reviews written and video,including the ones on Sosak,and i want to ask the professionals (meaning you guys.) for more info.

I had 3 mutitools (all of then made in china),on one of then i broke the pliers head by applying presure on the handles ,on the second one the blade snaped ,and the third one is still in my possesion (it is the best i had yet )

I started traveling since this year and i want to have a good quality multitool by my side.And from what choices i have i decided on Victorinox.
From what i saw , the difference between the champ and spirit is that the spirit has good pliers,and tools are controlled by a series of springs that lock the tools in place.

So here are the questions:

What is the difference ,between the champ and the spirit, in functions and usability ?
Do the pliers count that much? I mean the multitool it's nothing but pliers with other tool in the handles.Are the pliers from the champ any good,in bolts,nuts,etc ?
Can the spring/lever from the pliers or scissors (in the champ) break ?
Do the saws wear down pretty easy ? Especialy the metal saw (in both products)
What is the weight,and size (lenght,width,height) of each tool ?

Please fell free to give any advice.

Thanks.




P.S Oh yeah great site www.multitool.org , but i think some SAKs should be reviewed.



 

[Swiss Man]

Welcome to the fold. 

You can't go wrong with either (there is a rule in SOSAK) If you can't decide which one to get, get both.
I usually don't follow that rule because I can't afford it.

I read that you have owned three multi tools (all from China) and that two have met with uncertain disaster.

I can assure you that Victorinox isn't your run of the mill knife or Multi tool, they are thought out peices of serious equipment.

Here is the real question, What would you be using the tools for? 

Do you need a full size pliers, are you tightening bolts and such or are you pulling jumpers on electronics?

I have owned a Swiss Champ before it is a very nice SAK the only downfall I had with it was I wanted a full size plier.

I do own a Swiss Tool and a Spirit and I am very happy with both of them. The Spirit is wonderful because it is so light that you can carry it on your belt and never notice it and the Swiss Tool (big brother) is wonderful because it is a haus of a tool.

Check out this article if you haven't read it already.  The writer is really GREAT.

 http://www.sosakonline.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=170&Itemid=35
http://www.sosakonline.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=200&Itemid=35

[Poncho65]

Welcome to the forum AxelF 

I believe if you want a MT and between the 2 you have chosen it all boils down if you want full sized pliers as Swiss Man has said.  This will ultimately decide 4 you

My vote would have to go with the Spirit  I actually don't own either of these 2 but I have a Swisstool X and love it

Plus I prefer full sized pliers as well so my opinion is a little 1 sided of course don't let me talk you out of getting a SAK they are great in there own right as well

[ultimaonliner]

I'm want to buy a "multitool" and from what i've read,studied,etc... i came up with these two products :

SwissChamp and SwissTool Spirit.

...

So here are the questions:

What is the difference ,between the champ and the spirit, in functions and usability ?
Do the pliers count that much? I mean the multitool it's nothing but pliers with other tool in the handles.Are the pliers from the champ any good,in bolts,nuts,etc ?
Can the spring/lever from the pliers or scissors (in the champ) break ?
Do the saws wear down pretty easy ? Especialy the metal saw (in both products)
What is the weight,and size (lenght,width,height) of each tool ?

Please fell free to give any advice.

Thanks.

Swiss Champ and Spirit are so different that if you're considering either, then you really probably have 2 totally separate tool needs.  You may actually need to get both.


The Swiss Champ is lighter (6.6 oz vs 7.3 oz for Spirit on my scale), but both are pretty heavy for pocket carry.  For belt carry, either is of acceptable weight.

The Swiss Champ has a lot more tools, a lot of which, you may not usually think of as being ones to be carried (e.g. fish scaler, magnifying glass) but could be handy in unanticipated situations.

The pliers in the Champ are too small for any work on bolts.


The Spirit has significantly heftier pliers, and far fewer, but stronger tools. 


In the end, I would take the Spirit, if you anticipate doing work with the basic tools, pliers, drivers, awl, file, etc.  I would carry the Champ for "just in case" when you don't anticipate needing tools, but would like to be well prepared.


However, if you really do want to just carrying something for just in case, then you could go  A LOT smaller than a Champ, and pick something like the Vic Deluxe Tinker or one of the many different combos of tools found on Vics SAKs.


I think in this situation, you really do NEED to get both 

[Sea Monster]

If someone doesn't reply with pics of each soon I'm going to lose interest.

[Leatherman123]

Since you are going to be traveling a lot I would recommend getting the Swisschamp.. It has many things that would be useful while traveling (eyeglass screwdriver, corkscrew, pin, pen, toothpick, tweezers, and a ton more)..

[Anthony]

It basically comes down to one question...do you need a good/full size pair of pliers?

The small pliers on the SwissChamp are very limited...For working on SMALL stuff exclusively. 

Things like files, knife blades, saws, drivers are pretty interchangeable between the two, the deciding factor will be the pliers.

A good way to have both is to get the Swisstool and a medium sized SAK with Plus Scales which have a pen, pin, toothpick, tweezers..

[I'm Still Bison]

Welcme to the forums! When in doubt get both,that's our mantra I'm like Corrugated,get a Spirt and medium sized SAK,and if it isn't already set up with Plus scales,swap out and get the added benefit of a pen and a pin.

[AxelF]

Thank you for all the answers.

As i fought as well,it boils down to a plier battle.

The swisscahmp has the Plus scales , as you say.

And from the budget view , i'm going for the Swisschamp (there is a hefty difference of 40$ between the two).At a future point in time i'll get the Spirit...i can't resist it  it's so shiny and beautiful.

The Spirit has significantly heftier pliers, and far fewer, but stronger tools.

Why is that ? The tools on the Spirit are better built and stronger ? Why ? Are they not made from the same steel,same process,etc....?

Is there a chance that the red scales could fall off ? Has it ever happened to anyone ?

[Sea Monster]

Why is that ? The tools on the Spirit are better built and stronger ? Why ? Are they not made from the same steel,same process,etc....?

I wouldn't say "better built" - both are passed by the same QC team - but as I understand it some of the Spirit (and swisstool?) tools are heavier duty. I guess Vic expected the Multi crowd to be tool-abusers.

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

Welcome to the forum mate, yes the tool's on the Spirit are a little heavier duty , but to be honest, if you use both correctly, you'll never break either

There both very fine tool's, and I'm sure you'll be happy with either, as I've got both and have no complaints whatsoever

For the best prices shoot Tim an email at http://felinevet.sosakonline.com/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

[WhichDawg]

hello Axelf and Welcome the forum

some of the tools on the Spirit are a little "bigger" some are thicker, some are longer,
so they can take more use (not all of the tools, some are the same).

but the Pliers on the Spirit are much bigger than on a SAK (like the Swisschamp).
Plier based MTs are about "regular" sized pliers, the ones on SAKs are like hobby pliers

[Sea Monster]

the ones on SAKs are like hobby pliers

Which is great if you have a thing for them grey plastic jetterplanes!

[Abstraction]

As everyone has said theyre totally different and i'd say the deciding factor is how often will you use pliers?  The swisschamp is a lot lot cheaper than a spirit everywhere i've seen, it has a corkscrew, fishscaler, magnifying glass etc which the spirit lacks, plus the extra things like pen and tweezers but the tradeoff is the pliers are more like toy pliers than a full size pair, theyre great for small things but if you've broken multitools before i'm assuming you use them for heavy duty use, in which case the swisschamp's pliers may not cut the mustard! 

They're both fantastic tools but the spirit is definately the more heavy duty of the two and the one i would pick if i wanted a tool which both had, the swisschamp is better for more specific needs, is much cheaper and is a SAK 

[Tarrodemierda]

wellcome indeed !

why dont u go and try to grab one simple Leatherman,like kick or fuse,bmaybe even blast,or better yet,buy one used basic old school pst from our members,and then to make the tool kit better,buy one used SAK,to get tweezers,scissors,etc....that way you would be still savin money,be packing light and you would have still good pliers but also the implements to clear out light tasks as well...


 

[jock1]

I edc a swiss champ and have found it very useful for day to day things but you would struggle to strip down a car engine or something of similar size .My swisschamp does see daily use and has come to the rescue in many unexpected situations .I got a tip for mine  from our own Micky D replace the pin with a sewing needle but remember to bend the eye slightly or you risk losing it inside the scale it has increased the versatlity of my 'champ no end I always carry a little thread just in case
You will be pleased with your choice it can safely be used in crowds of sheeple and causes no alarm(trust me this country is very anti knife ) and unless your are in deep poo it will do most of what you need it to

[Benner]

I carry the swisschamp as well as a Spirit as I feel that together I cover all my tool needs.  Like others have said, I don't really see them as being compared with each other.

The deciding factor here is the pliers.  If you need full sized pliers, Spirit, if you don't, Swisschamp.  And if you can't decide, get both from Tim (felinevet) for probably the same price you were going to pay for them individually. 

[ultimaonliner]

If you really really need pliers and know that you will be using them, then it's always best to just have a pair of normal pliers that you can get for a few US dollars.

The Vic Champion Plus is like the Swiss Champ but significantly thinner as it does not have the small Vic pliers, but also significantly cheaper.  In the US a Vic Champion Plus costs $29 including shipping vs $44 for a Vic Swiss Champ including shipping.

[Leatherman123]

I hope you like your Swisschamp!

[AxelF]

i need some pictures with the stamp and the bottom blade inscription please, that assures the buyer that it is a original product.